The Old Mall - Campfire Stories

Let's take a trip down memory lane...
👾 / mikeburnfire
👾 / zach_hazard
🔥 / mikeburnfire
Nonstop - Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons...

[@augmundfireweave5348]

You know the system is fucked when its biggest critics are the Veterans, the people who chose to put their lives on the line for the country

[@callsignapollo_]

Yup, chewed up and spit out by the war machine, and told to piss off for their time. When you join the military, you either come out a nationalist or an anarchist, very little inbetween

[@juicedrinkingknight8207]

Even worse when a video about it (this one) goes from a funny and cheery mood to grim and sad.

[@joeyj6808]

The gratitude of our goverment is underwhelming.

[@anthrosaurian]

Putting their lives on the line for the privilege to be abused to death by that country... 🙄

[@Nabnab153]

feels oronic when you hear about the americans leaving Afghanistan, and the taliban cozying up to China

[@forsaken_king27]

"All I want is to just be happy. I want to be able to have a nice, quiet life where I'm just left alone... and it seems like a lot of the people in power are determined to not allow that to happen."

[@paulableman2663]

The despair afterwards is what kills me. "It's really disappointing." I share his sentiment, but it infuriates me rather than disappointing me.

[@Tscheche89]

@@paulableman2663 true but what do you want to do about it. Look at all the revolutions that happened. 9/10 times it causes the era you are living in to be shit. And you have a good chance to put in even bigger psychos then you started with...

[@thereallonefallout1920]

@@Tscheche89 That's when you do a kill everyone playthrough and start over. /j

[@scyfrix]

Kira Yoshikage be like

[@VHSo_o]

@@Tscheche89 So what, we let terrible human beings control, own, and profit off our suffering because the replacement MIGHT be worse?

[@loganbill4209]

This episode was an emotional uppercut every few minutes

[@grigoris.7732]

I was not prepared for the feels

[@Megalomaniac_Trans_Lesbian]

It's even worse if you imagine that they're in-character in this video. Two old and tired men, left all alone in a world that they weren't born into, having only each other left, reminiscing about their previous sad lives from three centuries ago...

[@seanwyrembelski2697]

INDEED

[@doug2496]

@@Megalomaniac_Trans_Lesbian holy crap you just somehow made the decay of america x10 worse

[@Megalomaniac_Trans_Lesbian]

@@doug2496 It's a hobby for me ^^

[@MayoTheJar]

Fun fact: the Barber pole colours represent, individually: - Red for arterial blood - Blue for venous blood - White for bandages This corroborates with the early concept of barber surgeons during the medieval period

[@Ixarus6713]

Dangit, I was half right. I thought the blue was skin and the red was blood. clearly I've forgotten some things. Congrats on that knowledge!

[@grimgrahamch.4157]

I thought blue was meant to portray sanitation.

[@Jackster8484]

I thought it started out with just white and red. And the red represent the practice of bloodletting(bloodletting is removing blood from your body, because they thought you had to much of it)

[@MayoTheJar]

@@grimgrahamch.4157 sanitation didn't exist during the middle ages due to a lack of available resources. Barber surgeons were renown for being fast, effective, but also deadly due to infections and malpractice

[@MayoTheJar]

@@Jackster8484 it was originally just white and red, you would be correct, im referring to the more modern rendition of the very same pole :)

[@Skreamworks]

50,000 hentai DVDs used to be sold here...now it's a ghost mall.

[@azreal1302]

Ok normally I would be pissed that you included hentai in modern warfare but this... This Is The Exception

[@grimgrahamch.4157]

God can we stop with the nostalgia trips already? Man. COD4 was the absolute peak.

[@mynameisnotfiveweenies5973]

Why doesn’t this have more likes?!

[@punk5585]

@@grimgrahamch.4157 am I missing the joke or did you just straight up make your comment an oxymoron

[@charcoal4742]

"5 years ago I lost 50 000 hentai DVDs in the blink of an eye and the world just fucking watched"

[@fakeguccisneakers4311]

"It kinda destroyed the family." Oh...that was actually pretty heavy

[@xayax7920]

My family used to be big in a lot of farm business in Florida, but especially ferneries. The man who started it all, my great-grandfather who sort of served as a third parent to me, appointed his firstborn daughter to keep track of the booking and recording keeping, all that financial paper stuff. By the time I was in middle school, she allowed everything to be consumed with mold and decay, and the IRS cut a swath through that family empire. His children and grandchildren have done their best to revamp things, but it’ll be a while before they make things the way they once were

[@SuperInsanewolf]

“I, Zach Hazard, want to live a quiet life.”

[@2010AZ]

Oh boy now we need the full speech as a copypasta

[@thallan]

"But if I were forced to gauge 1000 weapons in 24 hours, I would succeed"

[@coolghoul8515]

"this is my stand, I have named it [ROCK YOU LIKE A HURRICANE]" localization: [ROCKED LIKE A HURRICANE]

[@ctrlaltrepeat245]

@@duckfilms3662 [ROCKET CRANE]

[@grimgrahamch.4157]

I would imagine what he did if he had Killer Queen. After reinacting that part from bootcamp where he'd crawl in a ditch under MG and artillery fire, he'd go back to Fort Polk and blow up everything but the hand of the assholes he hated. Baloney Bob, the CO that took his cabinets. Then he'd just blow up Fort Polk. And the state of Louisiana.

[@ChillBro2875]

“All I want is to live a quiet life and it seems like some of the people in power are determined not to let that happen” god damn man I feel that

[@voidmayonnaise]

When are you guys starting the podcast, seriously.

[@thefmaster9833]

nice profile picture

[@thecanadianbeast4858]

Nice Stardew valley name and pfp

[@Pattamatt1998]

I'm not a huge podcast guy but I would absolutely listen to theirs if they ever did it.

[@MK.DANABNORMAL]

I really want these stories uploaded on Spotify so I can listen to these without the phone screen being on

[@Themurderin]

@@EPmager Are you sure this thing is legit? It looks like a 10 year old wrote the description..

[@subtlewhatssubtle]

I can't help the sneaking suspicion Zach gets freelance medical assessments from us nosy viewers by telling his stories because it's cheaper and faster than the VA.

[@user-jt8hq8sc1l]

It's a sound strategy. My 7x great grandfather was wounded in Fredericksburg and he's still waiting for benefits

[@vilhelmpuddintain9295]

"I just want to live a nice, quiet life" Zach is the Yoshikage Kira of feet, confirmed.

[@Solid_Wolf1]

I WAS LOOKING FOR THIS

[@crashmasterj0837]

I hate to be that guy but bad timing my dude

[@vilhelmpuddintain9295]

@@crashmasterj0837 It's never a bad time for a "Zach likes feet" joke, even in a campfire story that's maybe a bit more serious than usual. Levity keeps us sane in an increasingly serious world.

[@t.kenneth5697]

@Crash Master J08 Is there a news story I’m missing, or are you just that upset about “Zach Likes Feet” joke 369?

[@Mirkk47]

Zach is my spirit animal.

[@ronove]

Well, that was depressing. This is not qualified medical advice, but what Zach has going on with his finger sounds like what I had going on with my back. Was just a lump that didn't hurt and then gradually got larger and then eventually started being INCREDIBLE painful. Ended up being a sebaceous cyst, and the treatment was having a hole cut in the lump with a scalpel, then having all the fluid squeezed out. Then covered in a sterile bandage that needed to be changed after a week. Follow-up treatment was some big-ass antibiotic pills that I had to take every 6 hours [4x a day] with food for a week, and Advil. I was told that if I didn't get surgery to have it removed later, it would eventually come back, but that surgery counted as cosmetic surgery so there was no way I could afford that. TL;DR - *If* Zach has the same issue on his finger as I did, it *might* not require surgery. No idea how much it would cost, since I'm Canadian, and most of the cost was free for me [had to pay for for the meds, but not much, and that was all], but that'd be cheaper than surgery for sure.

[@crocidile90]

Depends on where it is and how soon, if he gets it soon, only the meds but I had to get the ones (yes there were 2) cyts out of my back (thanks Gma for the genes for that but still RIP) and had to have HOLES in by back shoulder for 2 weeks (and yes I ruined a bunch of undershirts). It wasn't that bad because it was a urgent care clinic and did the hole things instead of proper surgery. BCBS by my company paid for half of it only costing $800 (though this was back in 2019 with a stable dollar) and my just was netting me almost 200 overtime a week. So it was fine, but now, it would require me to ask for parents cash influx, hope the insurance company takes my Job app, because my security guard position isn't enough in these BS times.

[@ronove]

@@crocidile90 fwiw, aside from costs, our situations were similar. I did have TWO lumps that by the time it had become painful had swollen to look like one. First one showed up over a decade ago, but I was in the U.S. at the time, and since it wasn't painful then, I didn't get it treated. When I *did* eventually get it dealt with, it was also in Urgent Care. And yeah, I ruined a few shirts after the bandages were removed, and I have a pit in my back by my spine now. But it doesn't hurt any more, so that's something, at least.

[@mynameischris378]

Absolutely fucked up that a surgery to get rid of a painful cyst on your back counts as "cosmetic surgery".

[@kekula69]

"Cosmetic surgery" my ass

[@audiosurfarchive]

You can get one of those in your ass crack: a pilonidal cyst. They're surprisingly really common, and it's not from being dirty or anything -- just bad luck. I had one at 16 and just didn't do anything about it for several years, until I confessed to my girlfriend (now wife) who I had really only been with for not that long.. maybe a year? I told her about something that was seriously wrong with me; I was in so much pain that I was fine with if she just wanted to leave screaming, or try and help.. and God bless that woman she did more than anyone could ever have asked for. Thankfully I had coverage from my mother's really good insurance.. but then was promptly butchered by a haphazard surgeon who basically left me to fucking deal with it for another year or two until a godsend of a wound care clinic, and my wife (then girlfriend) took care of me.. literally cleaning an open wound and packing it with silver bandages (godsend) for probably 6-9 months, and then it was better. TLDR if you're a man it's a more manly thing to ask for help than ignore debilitating, agonizing, college ruining painful problems _The US medical system SUCKS: do your own research and advocate for yourself as you'll often have to in order to get the help you need fastest without leaving you penniless_

[@fevereverything9441]

I love how vocal you guys are about the current issues in America that are always promised to be fixed by politicians but are always neglected the most. I truly hope Zach doesn't have to get his trigger figure cut since then he couldn't fire the coolest guns around

[@grimgrahamch.4157]

They'd probably do it just so he won't go postal.

[@tachyon8317]

If they cut his trigger finger off, we'll never have the mikeburnfire/demolition ranch cross-over I've been* dreaming about

[@robertmoore5588]

Its also the reason they'll never be fixed. What, do you expect the politicians to run on 'new' things when the old problems just get rehashed and made worse to be used as a platform for future election runs? Lol

[@Hengilore]

América? Im spanish and i can relate like 75% of their whole video the other 25% it came by default ,old and corrupt fascism wich Its nice that the US governent supported directyl in some point,its a nice and considerate way of paying us for discovering the whole continent by corrupting polítics even more if thats posible. Seriusly never do this , even to you worst enemys the results are beyond repair

[@CdrChaos]

He just needs to stop being lazy and get it looked at.

[@ryanwilson5834]

There are actually attorneys who specialize in getting veterans healthcare through the VA, and they have been known to take on cases pro bono and even help you figure out how to navigate the ungodly system that is the VA. Zach may be able to reach out to one of them for help getting the VA to cover excision of the finger growth, and they might even be willing to do it without charging him. As for the American healthcare system, it's an absolute trash heap, but the majority of the blame for that can be blamed on politicians, lobbyists, and insurance companies, especially insurance companies. They're the bane of everyone's existence for good reason

[@axelkusanagi4139]

Man, these guys are so relateable. -My mall's closed, -My childhood home had sheets nailed to keep the cold air in (quilts work better) -That same home is now demolished -I had to work in my teens to support my mom

[@sirshotty7689]

Oh man the quilt to keep the heat in was my whole ass childhood. in the old house i lived in we had to close the living room from the dining room during the winter time with this giant thick quilt because the only thing close to central heating were those portable radiators in our bed rooms and a fireplace in the living room. My parents still live on the same property but they demolished the old house because it was awful. It was from the 1920's I think and it was full of mold and one of the bathrooms had asbestos. When it was raining, the roof had a bunch of holes and water would leak in between the wall/ceiling thing in the attic bedroom and make a loud dripping noise and considering I lived in Oregon it was always raining, by the time the house came down the only reason most of the roof was still waterproof was because of this carpet of moss growing over the tile of the roof.

[@spencernelson1580]

Yeah, I was like “that sounds a lot like where I live”.

[@waxitron9181]

"Why are millenials so depressed?!" Meanwhile our childhoods were destroyed, our futures crushed, and any semblance of a fair or just world was ripped away from us basically at the time we all entered the workforce. SURE IS STRANGE, OH WELL BACK TO MY AVACADO TOAST TRAUMA MEAL

[@kollinm3963]

This is probably one of the most depressing Campfire Stories.

[@petitponeydu7727]

that old mall story hits close to home, i grew up in a small city in france, and the only interesting place we had was a mall, a couple minutes away from where i lived, and it had all the stuff similar to what mike talked about. and when i turned 18 i joined the military and since it was the french military in the 2000's i basicly spent 10 years in the desert. and when i got out of the military i went back to the city i grew up in and joined the police. the first time i saw the mall i couldn't even believe my eyes, it was fully abandoned and it became a drug den. a year or two after i came back it burnt down and was replaced by a park. trully a metaphor of how my innocent self changed after 10 years far from home anyway thank you Mike and Zach, i love your content !

[@UnPokemon]

It's a really strange feeling, seeing the world move on, and to realize it really doesn't care.

[@petitponeydu7727]

@@UnPokemon it sure is, seeing the small town i grew up in become a big city, while I spent 10 years in a desert sure worked well to remind me that

[@monke9709]

the super U in my town has gone down the same road sadly, this brings back a lot of memories

[@faded_ink3545]

Good story, man. It must be strange patrolling your childhood streets, seeing them change so drastically from how you remember them.

[@petitponeydu7727]

@@faded_ink3545 it sure does, the worst is when i end up responding to a call involving people i know/used to know. a few years ago i responded to a domestic violence call that turned out to be between 2 people i met in high school

[@tonytwotries1162]

as someone born with a cyst on the side of my brain that doctors cant get out, it was hilarious hearing zach joke around at 10:26 i can now refer to myself as CYST MAN!!!! thanks for being a beacon of fun mr hazard

[@Hcox33]

Dang man. This episode was just. Sad. Godbless y’all

[@historynerd2373]

"its harder because theirs five pedals instead of four" Why are their six pedals if their are only four directions

[@TheNukedNacho]

chupathingy! How about that?

[@KurtAustin2448]

@@TheNukedNacho I don't know, looks more like a puma

[@tachyon8317]

@@KurtAustin2448 Chupa-thingy

[@Alpha0727]

@@KurtAustin2448 You’re making that up.

[@monstrocromo_3261]

Tucker did it

[@eliasholzheimer8085]

when they move on to the cyst topic and a full half of the video is left "oh boi this is gonna be a good one"

[@privatelast8724]

Well, depressing but also good conversation, yes...

[@kuma9752]

My mom was a marine and she died while i was in high school from a heart attack. The VA didnt cover her hospital bill and tried making me pay for it, so this hit home for me.

[@jamesminton5611]

How can they make a high school person pay their mom's bill?

[@joshwist556]

@@jamesminton5611 This is America, if a person dies whilst still having debt, the next closest kin HAVE to take in the debt and pay it off.

[@kuma9752]

@@joshwist556 maybe not like i said they tried. Its been three years since then and I used to get bills in the mail but i ignored them and eventually they stopped coming.

[@LethalByChoice]

@@joshwist556 That should be a violation of rights.

[@HockenheimIsMyDaddy]

"can't pay medical bills because i don't have money" just disappear, worked for me

[@Wandering_Joe]

Im in the hospital right now. I came here for commedic distraction. I got nothing but two of my favorite guys being really real with me about how im gonna be screwed.

[@kekula69]

Don't accept any debt or answer any phonecalls from debt collectors. If they threaten you with bodily harm, record every phonecall or voicemail from them and send them to the police and tabloids

[@Wandering_Joe]

@@kekula69 If it helps, Im out, didn't have to pay a cent, got a new job and am planning my next move in life. I didnt mean to be so dour in my word choice but I was also on pain meds.

[@BreadApologist]

@@Wandering_Joe yay im glad your story had a good upturn.

[@angelicbeast7793]

I'm very, very fortunate to be covered under health insurance, and I still have about 1000 problems with the US Healthcare system we have in place. If this is how the US treats it's *veterans*, I cannot begin to imagine what it must be like for those who aren't in the armed forces and having to navigate this hellscape.

[@SpicyMediaReal]

My mother had a fiasco that took place for more than a year because some [term used for someone who is less than mentally functional] couldn't code the insurance properly. She wanted to take them to court. I would name them but that would be "libel" and "defamatory" and "harmful to the function of the local health professionals". As if anyone actually wants to work for those cucks.

[@FiftyStates5]

The VA is actually worse than the normal system

[@tachyon8317]

@@FiftyStates5 theres a reason why people darkly joke about the VA "giving veterans a SECOND chance to die for their country"

[@30cal23]

My wisdom teeth cause me quite a bit of pain but ain't no dentist going to fix a broke autistic teeth

[@mehphala9184]

Can I recommend moving to Canada or Australia, the healthcare there is much better than America, and if you have healthcare in Canada and move to Australia, you keep your healthcare, Australia is hot sometimes and it doesn’t snow most places but it’s not hell like it said to be, Canada is freezing cold but the people are nice and it closer to the us if you would rather not fly.

[@waltervoidbringer4491]

Listening to stories about American "healthcare" is absolutely horrifying.

[@Phraustt]

The most accurate description I've heard is, "It's a scam, on top of a scam, within a scam." Every entity involved is trying to rip off the others for the biggest profit, and it's the average citizen who gets screwed.

[@zachhawn8720]

It's even more terrifying when you get thrown out for no insurance

[@Evinthal84]

Yeah, they really can be, and I feel like Zach is absolutely right about crime significantly decreasing if people had access to things like healthcare at an affordable rate. As much as I hate my job at times, I am super duper fucking lucky it has damn good insurance, both health AND dental...

[@freakshow3313]

@@Evinthal84 you don't gotta feel, theirs a ton of evidence to back it up, the best way I remember someone summing it up was, why the hell would you do crime if their was anything easier

[@Evinthal84]

@Krazy Kommando I agree to a certain degree. I lean more politically right (though honestly I'd even say lately I've been leaning more anarchistic...) but I do think that affordable (not necessarily socialized) Healthcare should be way more accessible, and that naturally occurring substances shouldn't be illegal. Portugal is a good example of how I'd like to see things progress in that area; article here: www.nytimes.com/2020/10/05/upshot/portugal-drug-legalization-treatment.html

[@Akehiko_Urabaya]

Somewhat bittersweet remembering we’re a generation of adults that grew up with malls as our jack of all trades funhouse

[@francisharkins]

Meanwhile our kids today have to stress and hyper focus on only their education for a slim chance at a easier life, and thats not counting the fact many types of education systems are rigged even trades. Oh you spent 4 years in school learning this trade? Well you gotta spend 4 more getting payed minimum wage before you can get your license and payed the same rate as a journeyman. Theres a reason alot of American families are moving out of the U.S. in droves.

[@adamofblastworks1517]

I miss the internet café. It was nice. I got to play C&C 3 there, a total of 3 times. Each time I accidentally sold my MCV near the end of the first mission and failed. I kept making that mistake because it was at least 6 months in between trips to the café. At least we still have 2 (edit: 5+) tabletop game stores in town, somehow. Idk how they are even still open with Covid and everything else going on. I try to buy local when I can, because I'd like them to stay open. Then there is also a Games Workshop store in town apparently. I'm surprised that it's there, as I didn't think we were big enough of a city to warrant that. I've never been there though, and I don't plan to visit ever either.

[@thecursed01]

@@francisharkins they are the ones who happily moved jobs away by happily buying made in concentration camp operating genoziding china. so i don't feel bad about their crying. send them to work in a poisenous chinese facility.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

@@adamofblastworks1517 We have one as well, but they also do matches there, so for physical games there is still a reason to combine the store that sells the stuff and a place where to play it. But I fondly remember going into the city center after school to play games at the big department stores.

[@Synthc4t]

i miss the mall around my area a lot it used to have a lot of places with cool things in them, but now the only "fun" place that's left is the LEGO store where you can tinker with pieces before you buy 'em, or contribute to their big daily sculpture/collage

[@Chaindustries]

Most malls in the us where tax shelters, and never intended to be viable.

[@braysonlilburn2296]

Its either that or the mall owner charges business $10,000 a month to rent and ups it by $1000 a year

[@SkylorBeck]

Local small town stripmall charges 5k/month which essentially ensures that no one can open a new business without a huge bankroll of cash to burn

[@TheLoneTerran]

@@SkylorBeck I fail to see a good reason for this. Wouldn't people just...stay away, not invest in the mall, and the mall would die?

[@SkylorBeck]

@@TheLoneTerran it keeps actual small business away and ensures that only big companies or rich people can rent as they can afford the inial loss of income before the business gets its footing. Most businesses don't make money for six months to two years

[@TheLoneTerran]

@@SkylorBeck As if the wealthy didn't already have enough advantages. Thanks for explaining it to me! Appreciate it.

[@RC-lf3ie]

Damn Mike's origin story is depressing AF I still love him though

[@michaelostergren3516]

Me: ready for another funny story. Reality: yeah life sucks because of our modern healthcare system screwing over the people it's supposed to help.

[@D00000T]

honestly, it’s not gonna get better anytime soon no matter what ideas or solutions people think up because politics will block any progress in implementing anything. The only chance to improve it is if a miracle happened and the house, senate and all of the executive branch decided to focus full time on improving the healthcare system and dropping everything else they’re arguing about

[@francisharkins]

@@D00000T Which they won't which is also why Americans are leaving the country in droves to countries with better healthcare, less drama, and a far more stable economy. Places like the UK, Australia, Canada, etc. America is just not a great place for anyone atm unless you own a business or are lucky to be born into money. The fact that some of the cheapest rent for the worst apartments in the worst neighborhoods right now in the U.S. is 700 bucks or more is outrageous. Meanwhile even with insane rent prices scumlords don't take care of their property and cause disasters like the Condo collapse in Florida to happen. Because ignorance and Greed. Plus the fact most jobs only pay minimum wage is even worse. Heck even if you get an education and go into a job field you likely have to take an apprenticeship which can take up to 4 years or more, in which the fact your an apprentice means you get payed far less to start meaning you wasted all your money and time on a job field... you have to put more money and time into well also only making minimum for half your apprenticeship or longer.

[@D00000T]

​@@francisharkins yeah and imo, most big parts of the world are fucked currently. In the west, if you go to somewhere else instead of america, you have to deal with the bullshit that those places also come with. Canda just had it's entire thing with the native population that no one is happy about, and from what I've heard and know, the UK is still fucking around with neighboring relations because brexit basically didn't satisfy anyone with how it turned out (there's also everything with terrorism and refugees in europe which I'm not knowledgeable to comment on). In the end, it's probably the same in all those countries where some part of society isn't getting improved because of political fuckery and arguing. And your only other option apart from the west is the eastern part of the world or developing countries and I doubt many regular people here in the west would want to go to either of those places. We are all just fucked currently

[@BLACKFLAME4941]

yeah because everything is fucking privatised over there (correct me if im wrong)

[@yourface2464]

@@BLACKFLAME4941 Can confirm. you're not wrong

[@whippygecko1963]

Man, makes me sad to hear those last lines, I grew up in an 'America is amazing' mindset and household because of how I lived. Turns out that living our lives and wanting to be left alone is a crime. It's a shame what America has come to

[@Ladle66]

The only channel I watch the moment it uploads.

[@mrsteamie4196]

And the only one I like before it even loads, as well

[@giguyjoe]

3:03 I sadly know that feeling all too well. Over the years my family kept revisiting a mining town we lived in for a few years before the mine closed and as more and more time went on, more places got closed down and torn down. When my grandfather passed away last year, my mother told me that she was relieved that she would never again have to go back given that the old hardware store got torn down that year.

[@halcionjoy7]

I understand very well what Mike said about losing loved ones to the medical system. My dad's dead because of the bureaucracy and brain drain in my part of the country. The panic associated with painkillers around the opioid epidemic really fucked him over.

[@ThatGenericPyro]

Lost me Grandma due to "Covid" New Year's Day... *Really it was them sticking her on a ventilator almost immediately*

[@halcionjoy7]

@@ThatGenericPyro It must irritate you to no end that the media has been venerating the same people who killed someone so dear to you. I'm sorry.

[@IllyasArt]

As someone who has had dental work done their entire life, Yes going to a dental college is waaay cheaper but I gotta say that they treat you like a guinea pig and just want to look good in front of their supervisor.

[@crumblumblin]

stories from our 2 dads are always great

[@nat040496]

I miss malls. They definitely feel like an archaic bit of the 90's and early 2000's, but they were so absurdly fun. I know some still exist, but no reason to really go to them anymore.

[@rickardspaghetti]

Alternative title: Zach receives Nurgle's blessing. You'd think he was a Khornite by how big of a gun nut he is, but if you look at previous campfire stories, there's an awful lot of stories about Zach being sick and hospitalized. I suppose there's also an argument to be made that he's with Slaanesh, going by how big of a weeb he is, but for now I'd solidly put him in the Nurgle camp.

[@AtheistIII]

Papa Nurgle loves us all

[@kingjonstarkgeryan8573]

*A single tear falls down my face* In the name of the Immortal Emperor , I grant Specialist Zach the Emperor's Mercy.

[@thatarnazel8399]

We he would probably be chaos undivided since he has multiple traits for all the gods

[@chrisbingley]

Love of Guns - Khorne Crappy health - Nurgle Weeb and Foot Fetishist - Slaanesh Knowledge of Guns - Tzeentch

[@emingmann1400]

@@chrisbingley there it is

[@reidgarrison12]

My mom lived in a apartment for over a decade. I practically grew up there, i remember the pools, the park and exploring out in the woods around the apartments. My mom had to move last year. I miss that place

[@Pattamatt1998]

Been feeling that "going back to where you grew up and see how much has changed" thing. Old town center that was just a Round Table Pizza and a few miscellaneous town hall buildings and eventually our town's library that got rebuilt there when the Round Table got torn down has all these apartment buildings and restaurants and an urgent care. The Baskin Robin's that we always went to after all of our school band concerts closed and is now a vape store. The Fred Meyer's (basically Kroger but west coast) my family did all its grocery shopping at completely changed its layout last year and I'm still figure out exactly where everything is. It's bizarre, and I don't really like it.

[@timspeller4084]

This was a very melancholy episode And then *cyst*

[@JackWolf1]

12:47 I’m laughing by at this because I go to a dental college to get my teeth done, and thus far it’s worked out pretty well for me. Though, there was one time a student did screw up when they put my bridge in, and they covered the cost for the repair work, so… yay?

[@MachineMan-mj4gj]

Ah, a responsible dental college, very nice!

[@charlie91757]

got my hair cut at a barber college and it was wonky like if i tilted my head it was level , he must have had uneven shoes on or something

[@ditbag_JG]

You just taught me more about collections and how credit works more so than all my years of public education . THANKS AMERICA

[@killzloe2713]

Hey, I just wanted to thank you guys for helping me through the hardest times in my life

[@jroden06]

Wish I could buy Mike his childhood home and get Zach better insurance. They deserve so much better.

[@rahmadrenaldi2624]

3:02 don't know if we feels the same way, but I was having a sense of disappointment when visiting those places or just walk by it, it's like how some old happy memory pass through your mind and then you hit by a realization that those places aren't the same anymore, and then you started to wonder where the people that you used to know is and what did they do now and whether they still remember about the good times that you spend together.

[@adenkyramud5005]

Yeah... I already struggle with depression and with leaving the past behind. Seeing old places that have changed always makes that worse

[@adenkyramud5005]

I remember almost everything from my past. I often randomly think of things and ask myself that question "does that guy remember it too? Am I just weird? This was such a special moment, I'm sure he must remember..." and then I just get incredibly sad when I realize how terrible this world has become

[@rahmadrenaldi2624]

@@adenkyramud5005 hey I know it's been hard for the past couple years, and we probably didn't fully understand each other history but people lives on and life goes on and so do you. I don't know if it's helping you but my advice is try to be strong for yourself. and if you can't, be strong for other in your life. and if you think you are failing at that, it's okay you try your best, sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. It just how life works, and at the end of the day you can proudly say "I live the way I want".

[@Saplingbat]

Man I feel so much of this, and every day I actually seriously struggle with my mental health because I just can't imagine a life I could possibly enjoy living with the world the way it is now. But there's also nothing I can do about it. Anything I could do myself is a crime, and anything that isn't a crime doesn't change anything. I'm so tired

[@42Mrgreenman]

I hear you, sometimes I feel the only thing that keeps me going is the sheer spite I feel for the avaricious, manipulative, and downright psychopathic that keep failing upward. Even in the knowledge that we are all basically caught in the momentum of a perversion of the already twisted system of capitalism without ethics, both heroes and villains...From what I know of spirituality, I feel the Zen Budhhists have the most workable solution, understand that suffering is caused by attachment to outcomes and states of being. If we can release our desire for a particular future, then there is nothing to worry about...but that always struck me as leaning a bit too nihilistic or apathetic...How do the lyrics to that old .38 Special song go?...Hold on loosely, but don't let go. If you cling to tightly, you're gonna lose control...and if there is one thing I can say of humanity, we tend to cling to our spinning mote of dust for dear life, very few in my experience conquer the fear of death...but I'm only 35 so what the hell do I know? Their conversation is a g'damn checklist for millennials... Lost family home to the bank in '08, check. Lost family/friends to healthcare system, check. Forced into terrible jobs at low wages by business, check. No savings, in debt, possibly homeless, no social safety net, that's a quad check.

[@charltonkellogg4253]

I definitely relate to the health insurance part of this video. I recently got dropped from my dads health insurance and I’m on my way to college which REQUIRES full time students to have health insurance so I’ve had no idea where to start on finding health insurance. Love the campfire story videos.

[@halcionjoy7]

That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Why can't the college just require vaccination records for the basic necessities? I swear they just keep finding new ways to put people in debt for an education that is 50% fluff courses they require.

[@JoshPhantom]

All colleges at least in California are required to offer full Healthcare for a cap of 1000 dollars a semester. I hope you find one that works for you where ever you are. Plus if youre dad is willing to, insurance will cover you to the age of 25 in the US. That's the legal year you are considered an adult.

[@SeruraRenge11]

Why would they require that? That's like a way to intentionally keep the poor out of your college.

[@JoshPhantom]

@@SeruraRenge11 that's the idea. The colleges are trying to get the poor out since so many colleges have become sespits of the worst of society.

[@NeliATW]

@@SeruraRenge11 you just answered your own question.

[@justinwilliams7148]

When he mentioned the VA I was hoping for an update on Zach's leg now that someone might have solved it.

[@Nextad_]

I remember my old mall. There was a candy store and an arcade across the way from each other. And that was next to the food court which had a Jamba juice and an amazing taco place called Taco Grande. Their steak tacos were amazing

[@coreycook1367]

Honestly, I love these two's dynamic. It's the classic comedy duo: Mike is the fairly lazy, witty straight man, and Zach is the enthusiastic, chaotic comic.

[@adamofblastworks1517]

Except that Mike also apparently wasn't aware that you aren't supposed to go into the back of stores if you aren't an employee there... I'm not quite sure he's the straight man.

[@kurtsurban2081]

To clarify on the red on the Barbershop poles, old medieval medical practice was bloodletting which was cutting small incisions on your arm or having leeches on your arm to remove your "bad" blood containing the disease. The cloth used to absorb the blood were hanged outside to advertise their service, eventually it was placed on poles and barber-surgeons later became a thing.

[@Evinthal84]

"You've got GHOSTS in yer blood! Best do some COCAINE about it!" - some Victorian barber, probably.

[@kurtsurban2081]

@@Evinthal84 Dang, you reminded me on how they said Cigars help cure tuberculosis and how cocaine is a safe medicine to use for coughing. Look this up people they used this as old medicine back in the 1900's

[@ragnarrocksoft9096]

Hearing people talking about the american health care system always makes me feel kind of sick

[@thirdeyefoxlove7189]

That last story is so true… prior 11B here and I still don’t even have any insurance because it’s too expensive, once debt collectors got done with me I can’t even get a place of my own either. Like at this point I’d be happy with a fucking RV and a plot of land away from people… so many of my friends from the military are also in this boat man

[@ravenousghoul5076]

My uncle slipped down his front steps and ended up with several compressed and fractured discs. He did not get it looked at for 3 years

[@lucki-monkhi]

Amongst all of this sadness and disappointment, I was particularly mad that the media store got rid of the hentai

[@airplanemaniacgaming7877]

blame all the middle-aged Karens REEE-ing about things their "precious little angels" (They are ugly, annoying, loud, and disrespectful crotch goblins that she all but ignores even when they are committing CRIMES) seeing something like that.

[@cavemanjoe7972]

The Kmart my family used to shop at before Walmart got to be such a big thing is now basically a van parking lot for Amazon. The RadioShack I used to buy breadboards, switches, mini bulbs and other such things at is a beauty supply place now. The arcade at the mall got turned into a mini golf course for awhile, but now it's just empty. Sears is gone, too. One thing that never changed is the bait shop we go to at the lake. Same hooks, same bobbers, same ice cream stuff in the freezer, it's great.

[@zuttoaragi8349]

That is eerily similar to how my hometown has ended up.

[@Twist-The-Friendly-Hunter]

New series idea, Mike set up a discord to listen to viewers stories from the military or normal life that are weird. Because imagine zach listening to other military cock ups and incompetents of fort Polk. Man I wish I went into the RAF, might have had some fun stories. As for the dental stuff? Yup it does effect your mental health, I know because mine is F'd up.

[@airplanemaniacgaming7877]

cheers from the Commonwealth country of Canada, the place that is becoming more of a "USA, but worse in very stupid ways" with each passing month. Also, obligatory UK jokes here.

[@spacezombiejesus3416]

Man, this episode is filled with super emotional moments.

[@Aloof_Fish]

Every small-ish town has the Mall. Not *a* mall. THE Mall.

[@Zenn_Chan]

if it helps, Zach, "Hmmm, yeah this is very bad, we'll sort it for you, come back in 3 months" is also something that happens in socialized healthcare too. I live in the UK and that is exactly the response we get

[@warkijiji4474]

Listening to the last half as someone in a country with free healthcare, all I can say is Jesus fucking Christ

[@oliverlambert1336]

preach dude, frankly if I lived in America I probably wouldn't survive a week

[@SpeedsMcRonalds]

Fun fact. I am an American, I am overweight to the point of obesity (working on it, exercising a lot) and have fucked up knees, my heart is giving me troubles, I am exhausted and constantly thirsty so I'm fairly certain I have diabetes or am pre-diabetic. I just recently got healthcare through my employer! Full, health, dental, and vision... But I live in a small rural area. And none of the few doctors we have left (most of them died during COVID or left due to brain drain through the 2010s) are within my network, and thus do not accept my insurance and cost an arm and a leg to see! So despite working for one of the largest tech giants in the world, with some of their top-end insurance, I still can't get healthcare purely due to where I live. This country is a fucking nightmare, and the people in power deserve to be flogged and tortured for what they are doing to the 99%. The government is completely callous and uncaring, and nobody seems to want to fix it.

[@siechamontillado]

As an American who has lived overseas, was always shocked by how many people wanted to move to America - especially Europeans. Why would you want to move to a country designed to keep you poor when and if you're already poor? Sure, the movies and some of the stories of people making a life paint a rosy picture, but the general population, we're lambs to the slaughter. It feels like insanity to choose to live here if you can afford and have the ability to get out.

[@BertockLeg]

@@eaglewarrior7979 Nah, we still would have free health care for three reasons: 1) it's in the constitution of most EU countries, so the citizens have a right to free health care. 2) the EU doesn't start wars every other week to destabilize governments. 3) EU supports the US wars, like the iraq or afganistan war.

[@D00000T]

@@siechamontillado there’s a lot of small reasons I can see for why someone wants to move here: safety concerns, dissatisfaction with their government, job opportunities, schooling opportunities or just the regular street talk about how “x country is so much better than your current one because they solve the y problem your country has.” While we as Americans find it odd why someone would want to move to a country that we see has a lot of problems, you have to remember that they have different views and opinions of America compared to us. They probably find it just as off why we would want to move to their place as they probably see a lot of issues with their country that we can’t make out from our viewpoint. Honestly imo, it’s best to just make the most of where you’re living currently. Moving to another place is expensive and a lot of work. usually the problems you had from where you use to live are probably not that much different from the new location and you’ll most definitely have new issues that’ll drag you back down

[@TRUProjectOMR]

I have 90% PTSD. They won’t rate me the last 10% with the rest of the crap I have physically, and by the time the end lines from Zach rolled around, I just lost it because it’s the most accurate portrayal of the VA experience I can find from someone else. M and Z? I love you guys. No joke.

[@Misslemancer]

Remind me of the time I visited my elementary school when I was in early 20s, had no idea after a few years after my graduation the school closed and become abandoned. I was sad the entire day after that

[@Jacob-oy1bh]

"There used to be a whole section dedicated to Hentai...and it's just gone now." "...not for the better."

[@brunolins3859]

interesting,i used to play time crisis and house of the dead at the arcade at the local mall too,but the mall still has a lot of people today

[@Semikris]

the dental college thing is actually really helpful. i went to one in around February and its just about the same as a regular dentists office except your in a room with about 5-8 other people who are also getting checked up

[@vincentgrimwood9051]

Hearing these stories make me feel my age, but I am somewhat comforted knowing I am not suffering alone by the passage of time, and the indifference of healthcare.

[@jacklish__]

Really hoping this episode goes viral...some really good topics discussed here.

[@Rook725]

I love hearing these stories. Hope you guys keep posting videos like these!

[@paulbastien8875]

The paradise of the rich is made out of the hell of the poor. -Victor Hugo

[@thevoidlookspretty7079]

Well this is just a sad one. All of it. And the weirdest part was that Mike saying he’s lost loved ones didn’t hit me hardest. It was Zach being afraid he’ll lose his trigger finger.

[@OmniscientNarrator]

Time crisis is such a great game series, i still go around to archades and play all of them when ever i see them... Great times

[@a1oilsauce]

in my "old mall" there was a stall that was just a massive miniature train set, didnt even sell anything to my memory, think they survived on donations, it was such a cool "store"

[@seiban8455]

I think my mall used to have one of those as well! I was such a train geek as a kid so it was always so much fun to go feed coins into it to make it run.

[@SlavicCelery]

The memories tied up in the childhood home... gosh. I remember driving past my childhood home lot, right after the house got demolished. Didn't think it would be that emotional to see an empty lot.

[@Kitten2642]

I look forward to listening to these. I hope you guys are always friends.

[@seiban8455]

This might just be the best record of US economic decay since The Big Short.

[@ImSamwelltarley]

I was just watching stories wishing for more wtf!?!?❤️

[@jackychang9148]

SUPER EARLY!

[@sircuffington]

It's often said by older folks that the 2-3 youngest generations that live today, have very similar life goals to those in the Great Depression. "I just want to live comfortably, and not go hungry, along with a job that doesn't kill me."

[@aidenburnside6380]

The barber pole thing was white and red originally, the blue was added because of national pride. There have been theory's about red being the excised blood, blue beings veins and white being bandage, but it's mostly just red and white because red and white were the two cheapest dye colors to use for the original banners and then the legend spread

[@crocidile90]

Yup, that is why police cars were painted black and white, super cheap colors (the sheriffs want to be special so they use green instead of black) Funny enough the police cars were to be cheaper but are now FAR more expensive than normal cars.

[@ObsidiaBlack1]

In the Renaissance, the colors were red for bleeding patients, white for pulling teeth and setting bones, and blue if you actually needed a barber's original services, i.e., a fucking shave and haircut instead of a back-alley doctor. Probably still more reliable than American Healthcare.

[@glenngriffon8032]

I love the debt collector calls because I'm really good at telling stories and I've had a hard time in life so I have stories. I remember one the guy said he was calling from one company and i just started rambling. "You think you got it bad? Lemme tell you. First it was raining today-" and I just talked over him and at him and I could hear the tipping point when he let out a sigh and just resigned himself to this fate. I kept that poor guy on the line for two and a half hours, i had a watch, i counted. Just telling him everything that came to mind. I held this poor guy down and forced my life story into his head while I just stole two and a half hours of his lifetime that he'll never get back. I do the same with scam calls to. They keep trying to interrupt me or interject but i just keep talking and steamroll them. Especially with scammers i try to make it really weird and uncomfortable for them so i talk about seeing my gynecologist and see how quick they hang up.

[@wiseferret4745]

I loved playing Time Crisis as a kid. CarnEvil was great too. Area 51 was my favorite though.

[@Rzormc]

This makes me think of the mall local to me when I was in highschool. Small strip mall with interior halls. We called it the grub mall. Had a Zellers, who remembers Zellers? Had a bowling alley with a small arcade. Was my grade ten year, Great year. Made alot of good friends that I still have in my life. Next year, in came the dozers... Had a block buster across the lot too.

[@matchboxcharm6177]

Hi guys it’s great to see a new video from y’all. I’m a big fan from alaska!!!

[@dafunktrunk]

Was it great having a hero like Mike to save your homes in Alaska?

[@matchboxcharm6177]

Damn mike you had to support your family as a teen. My dad had to do that with his brothers and sisters and it was rough on him.

[@matchboxcharm6177]

@@dafunktrunk man all I gotta say is I’m glad I don’t live by the coast. I live in a valley so it’s a bowl 🥣. Thank you mike love you.

[@Hunterstiq]

God, we need a Mike and Zach podcast. Anyone who serves, no matter where you go, what you experience or what happens to you SHOULD be treated better than "Oh, you suffer from health or financial problems. Too nad, you are civilian now. Deal with it yourself." My brother was a mess when he came back from his tours. PTSD, vision and hearing degradation, shrapnel wounds that never really healed completely and he'd swear he was one of the lucky ones. Took him months to get a long grueling hour job that treated vets like dog pound. But New York state kind of supported vets and he eventually got his feet under him, got an education and works in a career he enjoys and is financial secure. Why anyone should have to struggle after all that sacrifice is beyond me. Lots of politicians talk, using Veteran Support like it is some kind of badge or bumpersticker but doing absolutely nothing.

[@thedustylocket8466]

I'm glad the card shop that opened up near me has an arcade built on. Been grinding my high score for Mappy.

[@claytonjackson1809]

"It's really weird going back to places that you grew up in and seeing how much everything has changed and how different things have become and sometimes it's not for the better." - Zack 2021 Dame it. This quote hit me harder than the but if a very poorly held 12 gauge shot gun. I went back to my home town recently. Not too much has changed other than a lot of closed places looking worse for ware. Oh, and you know, the church I attended as a kid was closed down. For 2 years apparently. Well, technically them changed locations. But still, it was a shot put to the nards seeing the last church I attended for an extended period of time being closed, over grown and beginning to decay.

[@logictoast2224]

This one hurt more then I’d ever have thought it would.

[@trickshot1529]

You guys describing how your local mall gradually just ended up borderline empty hits pretty close to home, there was a shopping centre(mini-mall but British) in the middle of town, and it used to have 2 game shops, cafés, actual variety in the shops and such. But now one of the game shops is a literal husk, empty and dark, the other is now a pop-up clothes shop, there's a bunch of empty units where shops that had been there for *years* used to be, the surrounding area with other shops isn't doing much better either because the town barely gets any funding to improve the area.

[@sammiller7518]

Are yall talking about the Tucson or the Foothills malls in Arizona? you almost perfectly described it although I never went to it that often.

[@abelrose172]

Same here it sound soo similar

[@WhisperingAila]

To me, it sounds like Metrocenter

[@manuelredgrave8348]

"Was it the hentai section that gave it out? "

[@wafflerworld1565]

Hit the nail on the head there man.

[@sammiller7518]

@@manuelredgrave8348 I was a upstanding male and stayed away from all sin! (for the most part)

[@Mirkk47]

I'm from Europe and hearing about these issues I'm glad that everyone gets health insurance here and that the health care prices are regulated. But man, is there anywhere in the world where dental is actually covered by normal health insurance?

[@QMMarc]

Man the first line in this is just a Letterkenny intro man, I've been watching too much of it.

[@chalondavis6798]

Ya were havin some brews with your pals the other dayyy...

[@danbrown6183]

There were 2 malls in my hometown. Completely changed from my childhood. One lost its 2nd floor (the arcade and all the good restaurants) and is only worth going to for a bookstore and a GameStop. The other one lost all its good stores and is basically just clothing and an overpriced art gallery

[@sovietbottle-cap1649]

I grew up in a 1room wood house in seberia with my grandma,parents,and 5 brothers so that hurt a bit to hear what their saying

[@docholiday4129]

I love this channel just for how Zach and Mike play off each other

[@Glaswalker1001]

Oh god… every time I listen to Americans talk about their healthcare system it's harrowing. That's insane.

[@SinastarCross]

It's mad fucked

[@endo4137]

Yeah, It's amazing the country hasnt erupted in revolt to demand free healthcare...

[@halcionjoy7]

@@endo4137 We're not revolting because we're too fat, lazy, and depressed. We're also too individualistic for our own good. It feels like the end of an empire, and nobody will be smart or brave enough to stop it.

[@endo4137]

@@halcionjoy7 yeah I get that. People here are too blind or ignorant to demand any real change, so everything just stays the same

[@TheDragonborn97]

Yeah it also keep me wondering why no one want even a model of healthcare based on that of Germany, Canada, Mexico or Switzerland

[@alfredoelias4760]

That mall story hits hard. My town of Gainesville had a prime, but now a days it’s just depressing. All of the big stores are gone, only a few stores remain. And I’m still surprised the mall is still operational.

[@I_am_ENSanity]

A friend of the family had to have her g bladder removed, spent 1 day in the ER, and 2 days in the hospital. It cost her $97,000 with good insurance from her company. I on the other hand had neck surgery to remove several lymph nodes that have been stuck in my neck causing me ungodly pain for 5 yrs and the entire thing cost me under $2k. The place they did the surgery, the surgeon, and the anesthesia combined cost under $2k. Moral of the story: Never EVER go to the hospital.

[@aerynboyer]

First story honestly just has me thinking about Marley Station. Used to be the big hub of activity, and now the only reason to go over there is for Ann's Dari-Creme. It stayed after MS' construction, and it will outlive it. ALL HAIL ANN'S DARI-CREME!

[@kungfuhrer7489]

This episode is unintentionally depressing for some reason

[@Biodeamon]

it is has quite the intention. to get people to wake the hell up